The Spiders of Laguna Niguel

We have some amazing spiders here in Laguna Niguel; they are enterprising, ambitious and productive. The most productive of these spin webs across the sidewalk between the bushes and the cars on my street, invisible masterpieces that I break through with my face on my morning walks with the dog.

There's one little guy outside my house who strings a web between the giant bird of paradise and my second story gutter. Up there, he catches butterflies. And I have to get up on a ladder with a long pole to free the ones he catches.

In the old books on signs and symbols spiders brought messages. And there are two kinds of messages. The brown ones with long legs are a symbol of creativity and industry. When you saw these spiders it was a sign that your plans would work out and you would, through effort, achieve your goals in business. There were also spiders described as black with large bodies and shorter legs. Visits by these spiders were a warning to be wary of strangers and to be cautious in business matters. These warning spiders include the black widow.

I was thinking of this yesterday as an enterprising spider dropped down from my light fixture on to my shoulder while I was working at my desk. He was quite amazing, red, yellow and green ... I can't even remember all the colors ... especially because he was only one color after I squished him.